Heard on the Street: Quigley retires from forest preserve board

KANKAKEE – Longtime Kankakee Valley Forest Preserve District board member Mike Quigley recently retired his board seat after 25 years of distinguished service to the organization.

Quigley, of Aroma Park, retired from the five-member board on April 8. He had been the board president for the past six years.

Board member Amy Jarvis now serves as board president.

The forest preserve district oversees nine preserve locations, five of which are in Aroma Township, three in Kankakee and one in Limestone. The Limestone property is leased to Limestone, as the preserve district only manages properties within the townships of Kankakee and Aroma.

In all, the organization has 396 acres. One of its best known properties is the Gar Creek preserve near Kankakee Community College.

“He was always out there doing what needed to be done,” Jarvis said of Quigley. “Mike has always been a real hands-on person. He helped out with so many of our sites. He will be missed.”

Quigley said he will likely stay connected to the district in some way as he simply loves the outdoors and photography.

“This is one of the best civic duty jobs you could do,” Quigley said of serving on a governing board. “It has been a perfect fit for me.”

Quigley was appointed to the preserve board as the Kankakee County Board’s representative. He liked the duties so much he simply stayed after he left the county board.

He said the time has come to pass along the baton.

“Twenty-five years is a long time. I don’t have as much of the energy as I used to have,” he said. “I’m hoping some younger person with fresh energy, fresh ideas comes forward.”

A heavy machine operator within the construction trades, Quigley possessed the experience and knowledge which was invaluable when the preserve district sought bids on construction projects.

Jarvis, who has been a board member for 30 years, said Quigley was passionate about monitoring the different sites and bringing to the attention of the maintenance department when there was a need to remove fallen trees, clear invasive species or fix problems.

During the past two years, he spent considerable energy obtaining an Illinois Department of Natural Resources OSLAD grant to improve access to the Hieland Lake fishing ponds.

Hieland Lakes is a 62-acre site with 22 acres of it being ponds suitable for fishing. The grant allowed the district to provide asphalt walking paths allowing for greater access for those with special needs.

The grant also funded an enlarged parking lot and an exercise station.

An avid wildlife photographer and mushroom hunter, Jarvis said Quigley’s leadership will be missed, but he will likely continue monitoring the preserve trails he so dearly cares for and loves.

“Mike has always been a visionary and a doer,” Jarvis said.